My Favorite Roll-Out Sugar Cookies

Wow, it's been awhile, but I promise it is worth the wait! I've had so much going on with school the past few weeks that although I've squeezed in some time to bake, I haven't squeezed in enough time to take pictures and post. :( I will definitely be making some of the recipes I've tried lately and actually posting them because "Christmas Crack" - a toffee made with, believe it or not, saltines (amazinggg), and my butterscotch bars with M&Ms and peanuts need to make it on here at some point! I figured if I manage to finally get a post out, it should definitely be Christmas appropriate, and what's more fitting than sugar cookies?!

I've always had a very specific taste for sugar cookies, and I've finally found a recipe that I LOVE. I've been making Wilton's Roll-Out Sugar Cookies for 2 years now, and they have the best flavor, and roll out perfectly every time. Inspired by my friend's mom, who makes gorgeous, professional looking sugar cookies, I decided to try and actually decorate my sugar cookies the same way she did this year with royal icing. Although you might lose the soft, buttery flavor of the common buttercream frosting, the royal icing hardens and allows you to pipe really pretty and intricate designs onto your cookies. It's a lot easier if you just stick to 2-3 colors of icing, unless you have lots of pastry bags and even more patience! 3 colors was enough for my first "professional-looking" cookie attempt. 

 Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cup flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. 
2. In large bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. 
3. Mix flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl and add to butter mixture 1 cup at a time, mixing after each addition. Do not chill dough, it will get too hard to roll! If you do need to make the dough ahead of time and chill it, let it come completely to room temperature before rolling it.
4. On floured surface, roll out half the dough about 1/8 in. thick. Dip cookie cutter in flour before each use. Bake cookies on ungreased cookie sheet (parchment paper is your best friend, nothing will EVER stick) 8-11 minutes - when the cookies start to brown on the edges, pull them out! I love my sugar cookies a little soft, and these cookies do not change color much when they bake, so a little browning means they will be crispy. My cookies were a little smaller, so they were ready right at 8 minutes.
5. After the cookies have cooled, frost with royal icing: 4 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar and 3 egg whites. Add more powdered sugar to achieve desired consistency; you want it to be spreadable, but not runny at all. I used Wilton/Ateco piping tips 2 and 3, as well as a special tip for leaves! :) If you are worried about the raw egg whites, Wilton also makes a meringue powder you can use instead.

 

I also made home-made cinnamon rolls for the first time tonight, so we'll see how those turn out tomorrow, and pictures and a recipe for my Cinnabon knockoffs will be up tomorrow!

Merry Christmas Eve!